The BC government pledges new financial support for the recruitment and retention of women in engineering and technology.
Engineers and Geoscientists BC has embraced the need for more recruitment and retention of women in engineering and technology careers—and now, the Government of BC has pledged substantial financial support.
On Wednesday, May 22, the Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training awarded over $950,000 for the Sector Labour Market Partnership Project, a two-year pilot project called Advancing Women in Engineering and Technology, designed to develop recruitment opportunities and improve retention for women in engineering and technology sectors.
Advancing Women in Engineering and Technology will be managed by the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of BC (ASTTBC), in partnership with Engineers and Geoscientists BC and the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies British Columbia (ACEC-BC), and aims to help break down barriers women and girls experience accessing engineering and technology career paths in BC.
The funding will also help further advance Engineers and Geoscientists BC’s 30 by 30 initiative, spearheaded by Engineers Canada, to increase newly registered women engineers to 30 percent by 2030.
“Engineers and Geoscientists BC is committed to facilitating a level playing field across the engineering profession to ensure everyone has an equal chance of success in their chosen field,” said CEO and Registrar Ann English, P.Eng. of Engineers and Geoscientists BC. “We’re proud to be involved with the Sector LMP program, which will build on the initiatives we’ve been working on since 2013 to support diversity in the professions.”
The funding will address priority areas such as outreach to secondary schools and post-secondary schools, and will help the participating associations develop tools to incorporate diversity and inclusive practices in the workplace, hold lunch-and-learns for employers, and host virtual career fairs for Indigenous Women, Internationally Trained individuals, and persons with diverse abilities.
To learn more about Engineers and Geoscientists BC’s diversity program and Advancing Women in Engineering and Technology, contact Emma Talbott at etalbott@egbc.ca.
